Clinton News-Record, 1985-09-25, Page 1120TH YEAR NO. 39 WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 1985
50 CENTS
illoISCUSSIONS CONTINUA, BL -T...
RIXTH - Parents•, a> vii
14.
have nothing .but pose to offer
recreation , .. g leaders,< t t they are.
co corned tbaat the counsellors canna ,. and
should not, be required ti t , such
heavy workloads another ear',
This summer'proved tube the uiost'suc-
cessful year for the childlren'e recreation
program. ui Blytth. Some 116 area youth from
the ages of three-to.,over nine years old took
part in the dally events,' Conducted under the
supervision.of two leaders.
Counsellors Catherine Battye and Lori
Soueh, assisted by Dean Bell, led..the pro-
gram which saw childrendivided' into three
age categories. Forty-five children. were ag
ed three to five; 36 were aged six to eight; 35
were nine years and older.
® Some parents in the village have voiced
their concern to council about the number of
children registered in the program and
under the care of only two fulltime
counsellors.
Concerned mothers Jeanette Harris and
Bev Walker met with council this month to
discuss the problem and possible solutions.
Mrs. Harris noted, "The summer leaders
did a marvellous job. The program is great
for.kids."
She further pointed out that registration is
expected to increase again next year and
"two counsellors for that many children are
not enough. It's too much responsibility for
two people."
Mrs. Harris asked for .council support in
an effort to seek further government grants
to employ more counsellors.
Council offered their full backing, but
Na money for- sinking road , yet
By Alan Rivett
BAYFIELD - After meeting with govern-
ment agencies concerning funding for
repairs to the Old Mill Road, council has
• learned that no money is available for the
project this year, according to Reeve Dave
Johnston.
Council recently met with representatives
from the Ausable Bayfield Conservation
Authority (ABCA), Ministry of
Transportation and Communications
(MTC), Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries
and the village engineering firm, Burns
Ross and Associates of Goderich.
Reeve Johnston said there was no fwiding
committed this year. However, ABCA has
placed $135,000 in the 1986 budget for con-
sideration to deal with erosion control at the
river.
Other agencies may give consideration to
the project in their 1986 budgets which are
set in the early part of the year.
An engineering report by Golder and
iikAssociates of London, released in late
August, found the road to be unstable and
low recommended two ways in. which it could be
repaired. Rip -rap, a system using rocks at
the tip .of the river to re -stabilize the road;
and sheet piling, which is a combination of
rip=rap and a steel wall at the base. of the
river, were recommended with rip -rap car-
rying an estimated price tag of $200,000
while sheet piling would cost an estimated
$530,000.
Reeve Johnston says he hopes to have fun-
ding in place in order for the construction to
start by the spring of 1986. In the next two to
three months, council is expecting to have
replies from the agencies concerning fun-
ding for the project.
Meanwhile, there have been rumblings in
Mined that sub -surface drains should be in-
stalled before spring to prevent further ero-
sion of the road. However, Reeve Johnston
is opposed to this kind of remedial work as
the drain to be located on the south side of
the road should tie in with the design of the
project.
MTC representative Ross Jackson, in a
report of the closed meeting, says the
ministry supports either method of con-
struction. He also stated that MTC would
participate in the funding next year for the
road portion of the project only,
Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries
representative Dwayne Blanchard, said the
river channel should be restricted as little
as possible. The engineer's report which
calls for the construction to extend 30 feet in-
to' the river would be unacceptable to -the
ministry. He stated the channel should re-
main at 130 feet. It was later agreed the
channel width should be.a minimum of 110 to
120 feet. Paul Elston of the ABCA said
their_ concern "is about the flop(' and fill line
of the river. He said that no btlilding permits
should be issued along. the river because ad-
ditional.'weight to the bank may cause more
Leona Armstrong will
seek warden's chair
' Leona Armstrong, the 51 -year-old reeve of
Grey Township has a life-long goal she
wants to achieve in 1986.
She took a secondstep towards that goal.
at the Sept. 5 session.of Huron County coun-
cil.
Reeve Armstrong is the first. member ,of
county council to announce intentions to
seek the Huron warden's position for next
year. Her. first step towards that goal was
taken last year. Then she ran against cur-
rent warden Paul Steckle of Stanley
Township as well as Bob Bell of
Tuckersmith Township, Brian McBurney of
Turnberry Township and Harry Worsell of
Goderich.
Only Reeve Bellhas said he definitely is
not seeking the position a second time. It
was a close race between Bell and Steckle.
Reeye Armstrong came in third.
• "Most of you know one. of my goals in life
is to be the warden of Huron County," said.
Reeve : Armstrong. "I would consider it a
great honor." '
She isn't unfamiliar with the role of
warden. Besides having sat on county coun-
cil under four wardens, her late father was a
warden at onetime.
Her dad, Harvey Johnston represented'
Township on county council, serving as
warden in 1952.
She .first started in municipal politics in
November of 1974— She was then deputy-,
reeve for three years before being named
reeve in 1981 when then Reeve Roy William-
son resignedin mid-term.
She has served as 'chairman of the
county's planning and development depart-
ment. Reeve 'Armstrong: notes Grey
Township hasn't hada warden since 1945.
The reeve and her husband James, have
four children. ,
Baited. sponges dropped
in all-out rabies attack
•
•
The • provincial natural resources
ministry launched an all -nut attack .nor
rabies in Hurott County with the air drop of
13,000 baited sponges containing ,a rabies
vaocine here Tuesday.
Ministry aircraft dropped the 12,700
baits, liver -coated sponge cubes contain-
ing a liquid rabies vaccine, in the test area
bounded by Goderich, Blyth, Seaforth and
Bayfield to the south,
The drop of the bait containing the live
vaccine follows a test drop last year of
14,000 baited spnges laced with
tetracycline and a simulated vaccine
along edges of gravel pits, wooded areas
and areas of rough terrain. The small bags
of bait contained a liver -coated cube
slightly larger than a golf ball. Beneath the
liver was a sponge soaked with the an-
tibiotic tetracycline and the entire bail
was coated with wax and fat.
Dr. Charles McInnes, in charge of the
ministry's research team handling the
drop explained the experiement was
designed to determine if the sponges would
work on wildlife, mainly the fox popula-
tion.
The program launched here Tuesday is
the culmination of 16 years of research and
testing. Dr: McInnes told a. press con-
ference at the Goderich Municipal Airport
that Huron County was chosen as the ex-
periment site for several reasons.
"Today we are dropping about 13,000
baits with a live rabies vaccine and we
have a team that will be in contact with
area trappers in the next month to start
getting carcasses, he explained. "We'will
be looking for the antibody in the blood and
the presence of tetracycline in the teeth,
"We have conducted the experiment in
Huron because there is a good fox popula-
tion here and there are effective and co-
operative trappers. Our goal in this is to
have a control system in place but we must
have the effectiveness and the economy
worked out."
The disease rabies is cyclical in nature
and while there may be outbreaks record-
ed every four years Dr. McInnes added
that it is 'also irregular. "Over 20 years
there are ups and downs in the cycle and it
happens to be up right now," he said.
The cycle can work independently in 12
different centres the research scientist
said.
The ministry felt that last year's experi-
ment with the baits worked well enough to
pursue the vaccination method via the bait
this year. With the aid of area. trappers,
who turned in fohea to the Wingham office
of the ministry, the animals were checked
for, t et racycline levels.
• Wingham manager Andy Hauser said
!hat of 89 foxes tested, it was determined
t hat 57 or 64 per cent had taken the bait. .
While there is confidence the vaccine
will do its job, a theory bolstered by
research results, McInnes is not entirely
pleased with the product and its lack of
results with the skunk population. The
ministry has two lines of research ongoing
with respect to skunks at its Maple station.
The total rabies research program, in-
cluding the vaccine development, is
costing the ministry $1.5 million annually:
'11ic baits used here Tuesday are expen-
sive, Dr. McInnes said, because they are
hand made,
Similar programs have been used in
Switzerland and Germany but the vaccine
has proven relatively useless on domestic
animals.
"The live virus is the only one that cur•
renily works but it must be smeared in the.
mouth and simply won't work if it goes into
the stomach," Dr. 'McInnes said. "We've
been working 00 trying to vaccinate wild
animals since 1969 and this is not a perfect
vaccine. But, it worked in the lab and now
we'll get it into the field."
The affected townships have reacted
positively to the program, Dr. McInnes
said, adding that councils are responsive
to the effort made at controlling rabies.
Wind conditions made the drop tricky
business and anyone finding one of the
baited sponges is simply asked to leave it
alone. While considered harmless to
humans, a plastic wrapping on the bait
urges the finder to leave the bait untouch-
ed.
"It .won't harm anybody but it does con-
tain a live rabies vaccine. Our information
says there is no problem," Dr. McInnes
said. "We are being super safe and advis-
ing anyone exposed to the bait to be
treated as if they were' exposed to rabies.
It's 99.9 per cent unecessary but rabies is
like playing Russian roulette."
If the vaccine is found to be effective
through the testing of blood samples pro-
vided by trappers, it could lead to a full-
scale control program. The bait should not
be tampered with and should not be con-
sidered adequate immunization if eatem
by a pet.
While the 12,700 baits were dropped
Tuesday; ministry staff remained and will
comb areas to ensure the bait has landed
intact.
slippage of 'the road, especially in the spr-
ing.
Council is also in the process of writing
letters to MPP Jack Riddell and MP Murray
Cardiff to seek out any funding for ex-
propriation and or erosion control.
Reeve Johnston saidkeouncil will continue
discussions with theneies, probably in
the next six to eight woks. He said the in-
coming council ( after the municipal election
in November) should continue to place great
importance on the project.
"We can't ignore the situation and let it go
away. If we just fill in the hole and don't do
anything about the erosion it's going to end
i th villa e more money " he
said.
eJerk 1,407 Walsh explained that the pro-
Vincfal govern hent makes the final decisa
wberefunds are concerned
"We have two to three bones the number
of children registered in the program here
as in nearby towns, but because., other
municipalities are bigger, they receive •
larger grants to hire students," he said.
This year Blyth received funding from the
Ministry of Culture and Recreation t� hire
one counsellor, The second salary came
from village coffers.
"We applied for four youth, but only
received enough money to cover one salary.
We also applied for four, from the federal
government and they turned us down flat,"
the clerk said.
When applications are made next year,
the Village of Blyth will be armed with a
parents' petition, including personal com-
ments from the mothers and fathers whose
children are involved in the program.
Support will also be sought from the
neighboring municipalities of Auburn,
Hullett, East Wawanosh and Morris
Townships. Children from these areas also
take part in the Blyth program, and as Mrs.
Walker noted, "That gives you more scope
when applying for funding."
A final resort maybe to raise registration
fees for children who take part in the pro-
gram. This year the fee was $5 and Clerk
Walsh stressed, "thefees are too low. Many
parents said they would pay more, saying
that $5 a week wouldn't be out of line. The
registration fee is quickly eaten up in costs
for craft materials, bus trip costs..."
Turn to page 2
Goodbye summero..Hello autumn
A sure sign that summer is over and autumn is here, is when the Speed (back) and her sisters, Karen (left) and Bonnie, niade the
children dig nut their pencil. crayons and lunch boxes Shelley daily stroll to school.
Autumn officially arrived on September 21, but the new season s
ieralded in Blyth with the annual Threshermen's reunion, held at
he beginning of the month. Wayne Hockey, of Beigrave, was on of
he many participants demonstrating the old fashioned way of
harvesting the grain...But still in Bayfield summer sun worship-
pers take In thel season's final warm rays along Lake Huron's
shoreline. By Thanksgiving, the harbor will be quiet until next spr-
ing. ( Anne Narejko photos)